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Editors' review

The 2013 Bear Empire is a great bow that has been has been in the shadows of the Motive 6 and 7 this year. Bear engineering is continuing to impress as they have been recently with their come back toward the higher end of the archery market. The Empire has not fallen short, what so ever, of the pattern Bear has been following. The manufacturer is claiming and putting a lot of emphasis on consumers' requests and suggestions for bow engineering. This bow is Bear's flagship single cam bow that is comfortable to shoot with virtually no recoil. It is quite possibly Bear's best "hunting" bow with about everything the hunter can ask for.

Finish

There are several color options for the Empire that include Realtree APG, Shadow Series (black), Realtree APG Snow/black, red/black, and green/black. The camouflage colors are flat in finish. The red and green colors seem to have a bit of a semi-gloss finish. At this time there have not been any reports of flaking or chipping on any of these finishes. All of these color options look great and the Realtree APG Snow looks awesome.

Riser/Limbs

There is an all new riser on the Empire that measures 32" axel to axel. It is 3.25" shorter than the Anarchy and is .2 lbs. heavier weighing 4lbs. Bear kept the dual string suppressors integrated into the riser that they are know for. It appears to have a wider look and is appealing to the eye. As with nearly all bows now it has a stabilizer bushing that is stainless steel.

The Max Pre-Load Quad Limbs on this bow appear to be the limbs of choice for Bear in 2013. They are found on the rest of their high end bows also. The limbs are connected to the riser with the Zero Tolerance Limb Pockets. These connecters provide an interference fit between the limb, the boot, and the pocket which kills any shift of the limb in the pocket.

Grip

The grip on the Empire has two options. It has a thin neck and comes with a mold over rubber grip that can be removed for the second option of a panel grip that is underneath it. The rubber mold has a better feel and it also has a big Bear trademark emblem that catches the eye. It is warmer on the hand in the cold outdoors and also has a thicker feel. There is no torque noticed and it feels like its balanced out well.

String Suppressors

The dual offset string suppressors that Bear is known for have a unique look and do their job extremely well. They are adjustable and can be perfectly fitted to your shooting style. They have set of rubber vibration dampening boots to soften the contact made with the string and the suppressors. These dual suppressors do an excellent job of sound and vibration dampening along with giving the bow a cool look.

Eccentric System

The Bear Empire has the all new S13 single cam. It has a rotating module so all draw length adjustments can be made without a bow press or any other modules. The bow adjusts in .5" increments from 24" to 31". It has 80% let off and is available in 50, 60, and 70 lb. draw weights. The IBO is rated at 330 fps. This speed seems to be accurate. Coming from a single cam bow its speed is great.

Draw Cycle/Shoot Ability

This bow has a good feeling draw without that stiff feeling. Torque is not noticed and it seems very well balanced when drawn. It has a huge valley and it has plenty of room to move without it jumping back forward. The Empire is dead in the hand at the shot. The back wall is good and solid. It could use a stabilizer although it is already balanced well with very little vibration due to the string suppressors. The bow is also whisper quiet. The 4x4 Roller Guard aids in its smoothness and it has 8 steel ball bearings to do so. It also keeps the cables working their proper way.

Silencing Package

This bow is nice and quiet without any shock. The majority of this silence is the result of the dual string suppressors dampening the sound and vibration. The string does not have anything added for silencing which would also slow it down if it did. The Zero Tolerance Limb Pockets also assist in silencing the bow by eliminating movement.

The Bear Empire is just another quality bow that Bear has added to their line up that keeps becoming more well rounded and solid. Although it may not be considered their "best" bow by most it is mostly because of the way Bear has marketed the Bear Motive 6 and Bear Motive 7. It is their best "hunting" bow and has many similarities to the Anarchy. Although it is over 3" shorter than the Anarchy they are both high speed single cam bows. The Anarchy does have a slightly smoother draw, but they are both silky smooth. The Empire has the new style riser and has an MSRP of $849.99 which is $50 less than the Anarchy. However, this is still a pretty high price for Bear at this time when compared to other manufacturers that have been at the high end of the archery market for many years.

Perfect Usage

This is the perfect bow for hunting and is probably more specialized for hunting than any other Bear bow. Some people may use this bow for basic or recreational 3D shooting, however, hunting really is its niche with it being a comfortable single cam that has good speed. It is also pretty compact at 32" axle to axle.

Summary

This is a very underrated bow by many especially with the press that the Motives get from Bear. The technology from Bear engineers is still improving as it has been for a while now. It has good speed for a single cam bow and the brace height is very forgiving. The Empire is nearly shock free and is comfortable to shoot. The new riser is unique and attractive while still sporting the dual string suppressors that Bear is known for. It can handle a verity of shooter sizes with bows available from 50 lbs to 70 lbs. It also has a large range of draw lengths that can be adjusted with ease without a bow press. Bear/Trophy Ridge has amazing customer service and they show a great deal of concern for each individual. Any serious hunter or recreational shooter would truly appreciate the new Bear Empire if they want to pay the money it costs.

Full review: Overall this is a very smooth bow. The draw cycle is very smooth and feels like several pounds less than what is actually being drawn. Upon arrow release there is no vibration the bow just slightly falls back. The bow is easy to get and keep on target and balances very well at full draw. The speed is very respectable and the bow is very quiet. Overall this is an excellent bow that shoots the way a high end bow should. A couple of minor finish imperfections on a couple corners were noticed, but these obviously do not effect performance.

I absolutely fell in love with this bow from the moment I bought it. Everything about it is great.

by Joshua Lantzsch from Rogers, Arkansas – October 5, 2015 at 11:20 pm

Version: 2013 Bear Empire

Rating:

Pros: It is very comfortable, light and relatively short giving you a lot of maneuverability. Shoots straight and pretty quick. Killed many deer with it and don’t plan on switching for a long long while.

Cons: I honestly haven’t noticed anything that I haven’t liked about it. Maybe the grip, it seems to be peeling a little bit, however it has been shot 4000+ times. But you can order new ones that you can replace via an Allen wrench.

Full review: Everything listed above covers what I would be writing about this bow. Beautifully made. I bought this bow at Cabelas last deer season and was quite an upgrade from my other bow. Everything about it is as good as the description above says. I’m at 70 fully cranked and 28.5 inch draw. Slick bow.

Great hunting bow

by Luke Berning from Kansas – October 12, 2015 at 6:23 pm

Version: 2014 Bear Empire

Rating:

Pros: Incredibly precise

Cons: The draw is somewhat rough

Full review: I got this bow used at a Cabelas early in 2015. After getting it all set up for my draw length it shot with incredible precision. I have ruined several fletchings the groups were so close. Once I got my sights set up it just blew me away how accurate the bow is. I am now shooting 3-inch groups with 5 arrows at 60 yards. While I wouldn’t shoot from that distance while hunting, its still really cool to be able to shoot like that. I love this bow